COMMENT 162 – The Return of the Rajapaksas, the ‘Debt Trap’ and India
Sri Lanka has been featured in the international news again recently - and not only due to its electoral results. The small island nation - which is important to both India and China owing to its geostrategic location - was the first nation falling prey to China’s ‘debt trap’....
Upcoming Roundtable on EU-India Relations with Global India Fellow Akshay Sharma
SADF is pleased to invite you to its roundtable on 'EU-India Relations: Political and Economic Dimensions' with Global India Fellow Akshay Sharma, which will take place on 12 December 2019 from 15h00 to 16h30 at the SADF office, Avenue des Arts 19. Follow this link to register.
The new EU strategy on...
Comment 160: The Crime-Terror-Drugs Convergence in South Asia
The Crime-Terror-Drugs Convergence in South Asia
Comment submitted under invitation from SADF.
The convergence between crime, terrorism and drug trafficking poses an enduring threat to South Asia. Readers may ask: why segregate ‘crime’ from ‘drug trafficking’ when they are part of the same phenomenon? The answer is that government officials deal...
SADF Comment 158- Quo vadis Sri Lanka? Post-election outlook
SADF Comment 158- Quo vadis Sri Lanka? Post-election outlook
By Silvia Mayr and Siegfried O. Wolf
Overall assessment
Saturday’s presidential electionsin Sri Lanka saw Gotabaya Rajapaksa from the neo-conservative party Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) emerge as the race’s winner. The polls registered a record turnout of 83,7 percent (“Sri Lanka election...”,...
SADF Round Table ‘Exploring opportunities for cooperation between Europe and South Asia in the...
Exploring opportunities for cooperation between Europe and South Asia in the South Caucasus region
On 7 November 2019, the South Asia Democratic Forum (SADF) hosted a round table, co-organised by the South Caucasus-South Asia Centre for Business Development (henceforth Caucasus-Asia Centre) and the Association of European Studies for the Caucasus...
COMMENT 157 Sri Lanka- Shadows of the civil war loom over presidential elections
Introduction
Still recovering from a deep political crisis in late 2018 and shattered by the terrorist attacks of Easter 2019, Sri Lanka is now preparing to hold presidential elections on 16 November 2019, which many hope will bring an upswing to the country. “A stuttering economy, national security, corruption allegations...
COMMENT 156 – On the Asian Century, Pax Sinica & Beyond (VII): Towards...
In the shadow of the latest plenary session of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), the current government of Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan pushed the promulgation of two ordinances: ‘The CPEC Authority Ordinance, 2019’ and ‘The Tax Laws (Amendment) Ordinance, 2019’ (PT, 2019, October 8). Distracted by the...
SADF Working Paper 14: Alternative views for Afghanistan
SADF WORKING PAPER 14: Alternative views for Afghanistan
Abstract:
In Central and South Asia ‘the terrorist threat emanating from Afghanistan is perceived to be growing, with foreign fighters who have returned from the Syrian Arab Republic and Iraq increasing their numbers in Afghanistan’. SADF has dedicated a great deal of research...
COMMENT 151-Jammu & Kashmir in the spotlight
Jammu & Kashmir in the spotlight
Introduction
A recent constitutional change on the status of Jammu & Kashmir has occupied prime time on both the United Kingdom’s and Western media more generally - albeit not always in a balanced and informed way. I present here my perspective on the issue based...